Chapter 34
Zina froze when she saw the figure.
The gardener looked well past middle age, with rumpled clothes and mud–caked shoes.
As he walked across the carpet, which had been specially imported, he seemed to shrink into himself, his hands nervously clutching at his clothes. He didn’t dare lift his head to meet Kellan’s gaze.
“Who told you to bring these lilies?”
Kellan’s voice carried a natural authority. The moment he spoke, the gardener’s head sank even lower, and his voice came out as a faint whisper.
“It… it was Mr. Kyle.”
Kellan wasn’t surprised in the least, but his eyes grew sharper.
“He told you to bring the flowers. But as a gardener, don’t you know that you can’t put lilies in some patients‘ rooms?”
The gardener grew more agitated, his hands endlessly twisting the fabric of his shirt.
The next few seconds felt like an eternity.
Finally, he couldn’t take it anymore. The tension drained from his body, and he crumpled to the floor, his face ashen.
“Are you going to tell me you h
you going to tell me you had a good reason?” Kellan looked down at the man, his voice turning colder.
The gardener’s hands fell limp, all the fight gone out of him as he waited for his sentence.
Silence filled the room. Zina watched from the side, a feeling growing that something was off.
Her gaze fell to the gardener’s shoes, and something clicked.
“Wait,” she said quickly.
Kellan turned, looking at her with a questioning expression as she walked toward the gardener, but he remained silent.
Zina pressed her lips together and crouched down to get a better look.
“You work in the greenhouse? How often do you bring flowers to the manor?”
“Every… every three days,” the gardener stammered.
Zina nodded. “Tell me about your family.”
“What?” The gardener’s head snapped up, his confusion making him stutter. He had no idea what she was getting at.
“Your child,” she continued. “How old? Are they in the hospital right now?”
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Chapter 34
“How… how did you know?” he whispered, his eyes wide with shock as he instinctively recoiled,
“Just answer my question.”
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X
Compared to Kellan’s chilling demeanor, this masked woman seemed far more approachable.
The gardener hesitated, then finally grit his teeth and spoke. “Sir, please, save my son. He’s sick, and he needs of money. I wasn’t thinking straight, I was desperate, and that’s why I agreed to bring the lilies here.”
money.
A lot
“I know you didn’t mean any real harm,” Zina said softly. “Otherwise, you wouldn’t have chosen unopened buds and cracked the window open.
She glanced toward the window, where a small gap allowed fresh air to circulate.
It was because of this that the old man’s condition hadn’t worsened, even though he hadn’t woken up.
Kellan followed her gaze to the window and pursed his lips, swallowing the words he was about to say.
He felt a strange sense of familiarity as he looked at her. ‘I feel like I’ve seen her somewhere before!
“Tell me exactly what happened. What did Kyle say to you?” Zina asked, her eyes meeting the gardener’s. He quickly looked down, seeming even more timid.
“Mr. Kyle just told me to bring some lilies here, and he said he’d cover my son’s medical bills. But then my son’s condition got worse, and the costs went up. Mr. Kyle refused to pay any more…
The gardener trailed off and closed his eyes as if in relief.
“I came back today to take the lilies away. My son… he’s not going to make it. I have nothing left to lose
The raw despair of a father hung in the air, a tangible thing that pricked at Zina’s heart
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田
AD
